Britain will have a bigger population than any other country in Europe by 2050

That year, the population is expected to have risen to 77 million but we'll hit 70 million within just nine years

By Kathryn Cain

4th March 2017, 9:05 pm

Updated: 5th March 2017, 5:00 am

BRITAIN’s population is set to become to biggest in EUROPE in just over 30 years - even overtaking superpowers France and Germany, new figures have revealed.

The population of the UK will be the largest in Europe by 2050, overtaking France and Germany, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures. That year, the population is expected to have risen to 77 million.

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Britain's population is set to become the biggest in Europe by 2050

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With 77 million people it will dwarf France and Germany

Shockingly there will be more than 70 million people in Britain within nine years - and one in five people will be aged 65 or over.

The landmark figure will be reached about a year earlier than previously thought, according to the ONS.

Natural growth — the difference between the number of people being born and dying — and those moving to the UK from other countries are helping to bump up the numbers of people in Britain.

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In just nine years the Office of National Statistics says there will be more than 70 million people

Figures from the ONS last year showed that the population was about 65 million.

A rise in recent years has been linked to migrants coming from the EU from eastern nations such as Poland.

And Brits are getting older too. The amount of people aged over 65 is expected to reach 20 per cent by 2025, up from 14.1 per cent in 1975.

While at the same time the proportion of children aged 15 and younger is expected to fall from 24 per cent to 20 per cent. Almost a quarter of the population will be over 65 in 2045, reports The Times.

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More than 3.2 million people will be in their eighties by 2025 and a further 770,000 will be in their nineties, compared with 2.6 million and 558,000 respectively last year.

An ageing population could mean fewer people of working age to support those of pension age which could then put additional pressure on the NHS and other social care systems.

“While a larger population increases the size and productive capacity of the workforce, it also increases pressure on services,” the ONS said.

Baroness Altmann, the former pensions minister, told the newspaper: “The care system is in crisis at the moment because those in their eighties and beyond are living longer than was budgeted for and no one set money aside for that.

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But one in five people will be aged 65 or over in nine years

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The landmark figure will be reached about a year earlier than previously thought

“The number in that age range is relatively small but when you start to look ahead the current baby boomer-born cohort — who in 20 years will reach their eighties and themselves need looking after — is larger.”

She said that the figures should be a wake-up call to the government.

“We’ve got to start putting some money aside now,” she said. “We should be celebrating that the baby-boom generation are going to live longer on average than previous generations but we need to make sure they have some resources earmarked in case they need care.”

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